276. Very Precious to God

Daniel 10:11-12 NKJV And he said to me, “O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for I have now been sent to you.” While he was speaking this word to me, I stood trembling. (12) Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words.

Daniel 10:19 NKJV And he said, “O man greatly beloved, fear not! Peace be to you; be strong, yes, be strong!” So when he spoke to me I was strengthened, and said, “Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.”

Daniel had received a mighty message from God and had begun to lose heart because of the magnitude of the End-Time Message and the 70-week prophecy that he had seen in a vision and heard from Gabriel. Now he just had a vision of the Lord, the pre-incarnate Jesus, Himself and is utterly overwhelmed.

I’ve not yet had this kind of encounter with the Lord, but I have had the opportunities or assignments from the Lord that have made my eyes pop out of my head and my heart to beat out of my chest. In those moments the enormity of the task just seems so vast that I can’t grasp how I’ll get it done or even where to start. Thank God, no matter the calling, the mission, or the task that He gives us, we are never alone.

Daniel was not alone. And you are never alone in the call of God. The Lord wanted to make sure Daniel knew this and sent Gabriel to encourage him (verse 19). I love the way the NLT reads here.

Daniel 10:19 NLT “Don’t be afraid,” he said, “for you are very precious to God. Peace! Be encouraged! Be strong!” As he spoke these words to me, I suddenly felt stronger and said to him, “Please speak to me, my lord, for you have strengthened me.”

The Lord wanted to make sure that Daniel knew how precious he was to God and to speak peace and strength over him. In Daniel’s case it took 3 weeks for that encouragement to arrive because of demonic forces blocking the messenger, but you and I no longer have any time delay to be concerned with because the Spirit of God now dwells in us.

God’s indwelling presence provides us with constant encouragement and instant access to His wisdom and presence. We don’t have to fast for 3 weeks to be encouraged by God; it doesn’t even have to take 3 minutes. All we have to do is unplug from the situation or task that is overwhelming us and causing us to fear, and plug into His glorious presence.

So take a moment right now to unplug from stress, problems, and deadlines. Now plug into His indwelling presence and take a deep breath. Let Him speak words of peace, strength and encouragement to you and over you right now. Be refreshed and be encouraged. You are never alone and you are very precious to God.